Smoltz will make today's start

Braves Notes

Posted: Monday, September 05, 2005

ATLANTA - With his competitive juices nearly overflowing, Braves ace John Smoltz said Monday afternoon that there was nothing that would keep him from making his scheduled start today against Pedro Martinez and the Mets.

That includes the sore neck that forced him to leave his last start after five innings and put this evening's outing in doubt.

"I was concerned," Smoltz said, "concerned enough to come out after five innings."

Smoltz (13-6, 3.02) hasn't missed a start all season, despite being, at 38, the oldest member of the rotation.

The knot in his trap muscle, in his upper back, started to loosen after a cortisone shot late last week.

Smoltz said by the time he threw his side session Saturday, he knew making his start wouldn't be a problem.

"That sealed it for me," said Smoltz, who was able to swivel his neck around to demonstrate for a few media members.

While Smoltz conceded today isn't the most important start to him, he said it's the opening leg of a five-start span that's of utmost importance to he and the team.

"I'm looking forward to this stretch run," he said. "I want to be at my best. I want to be able to sustain. My mindset is anyway, anyhow, I'm not losing. I'm not going to lose a baseball game."

Fueling that bulldog mentality also, he said, is his counterpart.

Smoltz and Martinez (13-6, 2.90) are 1-1 against one another this season since the former Red Sox ace switched leagues.

Martinez threw a two-hitter to top Smoltz's 15-strikeout day April 10. Smoltz evened the score by beating Pedro on April 26 at Shea.

More Hampton

If all goes well in Mike Hampton's simulated game Wednesday, the left-hander said he's hopeful of a return to the starting rotation next week on the team's road trip to Washington, Philadelphia and New York.

"That'd be nice. I'd definitely be open to that," said Hampton, on the disabled list with a herniated disc in his back. "It's a ways off, but that'd be a good target date."

Hampton, 5-3 with a 3.50 in just 12 starts, thought he was going to be activated Sunday to possibly make a few appearances out of the bullpen. Manager Bobby Cox told him just before the game that he'd changed his mind, that he'd like Hampton to return as a starter not a reliever.

"The more he thought about it, I guess, they decided it might not be the best thing," Hampton said. "If I go an inning a week, how much is that going to help the team?"

Boyer finally breaks

Blaine Boyer's streak of 15 consecutive scoreless outings was snapped in the eighth inning Monday by the Mets.

The rookie from Marietta hadn't allowed a run since July 30, a 15 1/3-inning stretch.

With one out, he walked New York third baseman David Wright on four pitches. Wright got to third on Doug Mientkiewicz's single, and Ramon Castro's sac fly to center tied the game at 2.

Chipper Jones' two-run homer in the bottom of the inning, however, made Boyer the pitcher of record. Kyle Farnsworth's save in the ninth gave Boyer (2-1) the win.